Start Up Loans data shows record demand for finance this Summer
Start Up Loans reports that this summer has seen the highest number of loans taken out by founders over the past four summers. This growth comes despite reports indicating low levels of business confidence, highlighting that UK small business founders accessing the programme remain undeterred and keen to start up new ventures.
The programme, which is part of the British Business Bank, delivered more than £35m in loans to founders between June and August 2025. This marks a 10% increase in the value of loans in comparison to last summer. The summer months of 2024 were themselves 6.2% higher than the summer of 2023.
This Start Up Loans increase mirrors recent figures from UK Finance, which report that the major banks increased lending by 30% for businesses with a turnover of under £2m in the first quarter of 2025, compared with the same period in 2024.
Over the summer break, an impressive 20% of Start Up Loans have been secured by Gen Z founders – those aged under 28 years old, reflecting a growing interest amongst the younger generation in starting their own business. A core premise of the programme is to provide loans to founders from all corners of the UK, thereby driving regional growth. This summer, 84% of loans were taken out by founders located outside London.
The programme is also dedicated to providing finance to founders who might otherwise encounter barriers in accessing funds. 40% of loan recipients over the summer months were female, 21% were from non-white minorities, and 6% were unemployed at the time of applying for their loan.
Louise McCoy, managing director of Start Up Loans Products, commented: “While we know business owners face a lot of challenges it is great to see in our data that demand for start up finance has continued to grow year-on-year through the summer months.
“This ’summer of business’ shows that people still aspire to start businesses in a wide range of sectors, that there’s entrepreneurial talent and demand across the country and that we are helping people get the access to the finance they need to start a business. It’s also great to see a high proportion of women and people from ethnic minority backgrounds benefitting from the finance and wider support offered by the Start Up Loans programme.”
Since its inception in 2012, the programme has delivered 125,000 loans totalling over £1.2bn in funding. Earlier in the summer the government announced an expansion of the Start Up Loans programme, which will offer over £1bn in additional lending to entrepreneurs as part of its Backing Your Business plan. This scaling up of the programme aims to provide 69,000 loans over the upcoming Spending Review period, with the average loan size expected to increase from £12,000 to £15,000.
This expansion could significantly boost the economy, contributing an estimated £1.3bn in additional economic output. It is also anticipated to generate an extra £3.1bn in turnover and create around 12,600 new jobs throughout the duration of this financial initiative.
The Start Up Loans programme provides personal loans for business purposes of up to £25,000 at a 6% fixed interest rate per annum and offers free dedicated mentoring and support to each business.